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I hope y’all had fun watching the movies. Like I said before, this one’s a hard one. Rocki, take Elijah to my grandma’s place. There will be a letter for you under the gnome on the porch. Try to go in the morning and do not get caught. Dad should be at work and Mom won’t notice because she never goes over there.
Sorry for the pain this will cause. Two more adventures and then I’ll send you on a fun one.
Love you both, always,
Sasha
I let out a breath and look up at the stucco ceiling, clenching my phone to my chest. She was right. This will be a hard one. Sasha’s gran was a troubled soul. She lived in a small apartment on the Cades’ property, and Sasha and I would sometimes go over there for tea and cookies when we were kids. Sasha thought the world of the woman, but to be honest, I was a little scared of her.
Gran killed herself in that home when we were thirteen.
I don’t want to go there, not even to show Elijah this pivotal piece of Sasha’s history. But if that’s what she wants, then that’s what I’ll do.
“As you wish,” I whisper, then I join my parents back at our table.
***
Elijah meets me at Izzy’s right after school on Friday. We’d agreed to meet here so my parents wouldn’t get suspicious, and Izzy didn’t need me to work today, so it all works perfectly.
I roll down my window when he backs his motorcycle into the spot next to me. “Get in,” I call out. “Let’s get this over with.”
He peers at me through his helmet. “What does that mean?”
I shrug, my hands on the steering wheel. “Just not looking forward to this one. It’s … sad.”
“Oh,” he says, nodding. He jerks his head. “Get on.”
“Or you could get in my car,” I say, tapping the outside of my door. “I know how to get there and you don’t.”
“Yeah, but Sasha’s parents know your car, right? What if they see it parked on their road?”
I heave a sigh and roll up my window. He has a good point. Elijah straddles his bike, the motor rumbling. He hands me his helmet and I grimace at the idea of sharing his head sweat, but I put it on. Safety first and all that.
My breath catches in my throat as I realize what comes next. Elijah revs the bike and I climb on, settling my feet on the back pegs. “How will you know where to go?” I yell over the roar of the motor.
“I know the subdivision,” he says, his black hair blowing all over his face in the breeze. “Just squeeze my arm when we’re close. I’ll park a few houses down.”
“Okay,” I call out.
He drops it into first gear and slowly pulls out of the parking space. I grab on to his sides, trying to be all casual about it, but as we pull onto the highway, I lean forward and hold on tighter. His abs are flexed beneath my grip, and I have to focus on breathing normally, on thinking about Sasha, not her dreamy-as-hell brother.
Luckily, Gran’s house isn’t very far away. I signal for him to slow down at the little rec center building at the front of their neighborhood. It’ll be a bit of a walk, but better safe than sorry. Plus, we can cut through the wooded area that leads to the Cades’ backyard, and it’ll keep us off the roads in case Mrs. Cade happens to be driving by.
The thought of her seeing me with Sasha’s male look-a-like sends a chill down my spine. For the first time since meeting Elijah, I wonder what will happen to us when this is over. If we stay friends, there’s no way to keep this secret forever.
“You okay?” Elijah asks.
“Perfect,” I say, handing him back his helmet as I shake away the slimy feeling of lying to people I care about.
“The bike didn’t scare you?” He eyes me with this cocky look. Is he trying to impress me?
“Daddy has a Harley,” I say. “I’m no stranger to motorcycle rides.”
“Ah, I see how it is.” He taps the cracked leather seat on his bike. “My old Honda isn’t as cool as the Harley.”
“Nope,” I say, playfully shoving him in the arm. “Let’s get going. And wipe that smile off your face. This one is gonna suck.”
“Why’s that?” he asks as he falls into step next to me, hands shoved in his pockets. I swear he wears the same jeans every time I see him. Meanwhile, I’m putting more thought and effort into everything I wear each new time we meet up.
